DECLARING JUNE 12 AS PHILIPPINE INDEPENDENCE DAY

WHEREAS, the
establishment of the Philippine Republic by the Revolutionary
Government under General Emilio Aguinaldo on June 12, 1898, marked
our people’s declaration and exercise of their fight to
self-determination, liberty, and independence;

WHEREAS, such a
historic and inspiring action was a legitimate assertion by the
Filipino nation of their natural and inalienable claim to freedom and
independence, which is an inherent right of every people not
dependent upon the will and discretion of another;

WHEREAS, the
transcendental importance of the event demands that it be observed
throughout the land with fitting ceremonies to the end that it will
be cherished forever in the hearts of the Filipino people and inspire
them and posterity to greater dedication and endeavor for the welfare
of the country and the well-being of mankind;

NOW, THEREFORE, I,
Diosdado Macapagal, President of the Philippines, by virtue of the
authority vested in me by section 30 of the Revised Administrative
Code, do hereby declare Wednesday, June 12, 1963, as a special public
holiday throughout the Philippines in commemoration of our peoples
declaration of their inherent and inalienable right to freedom and
independence.

I urge all national,
provincial, city, and municipal officials throughout the country to
make arrangements in their respective localities for the appropriate
celebration of the occasion as Philippine Independence Day.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF,
I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the Republic of
the Philippines to be affixed.

Done in the City of
Manila, this 20th day of May, in the year of Our Lord, nineteen
hundred and sixty-three.

DIOSDADO
MACAPAGAL
President of the Philippines

By the
President:
SALVADOR L. MARIÑO
Executive Secretary